Mennonite Weekly Review

Church is big business these days — quite literally, in some cases. In recent years Mennonite institutions have benefited from millions of dollars that come, ultimately, from a huge pharmaceutical company.

The Lilly Endowment, which derives most of its funds from stock in the Eli Lilly drug company, gave $12.5 million to Goshen (Ind.) College in 2006. The endowment has given $4.2 million to Associated Mennonite Biblical Seminary in Elkhart, Ind., since 2002.

It has also given smaller amounts to Eastern Mennonite University in Harrisonburg, Va.; Mennonite Brethren Biblical Seminary in Fresno, Calif.; and a number of Mennonite congregations.

A donor with coffers as deep as the Indianapolis-based Lilly Endowment raises questions: Is all money the same in God’s eyes? Does it matter how donated money is made? What happens to our “more-with-less” heritage when we tap into the profit machinery of companies that operate in the “more-with-more” realm of stock market pressures, aggressive advertising and unbridled accumulation?

And if you follow the Lilly money — company profits were nearly $3 billion in 2007 — to its source, more questions arise.

According to 2006 reports in The New York Times, Eli Lilly and Co. engaged in a “decade-long effort to play down the health risks of Zyprexa, its best-selling medication for schizophrenia.” The company is accused of withholding information from doctors and encouraging doctors to prescribe the drug for uses not approved by the Food and Drug Administration.

As a result, the company is now negotiating a settlement with federal prosecutors that could lead to a $2 billion fine. The company has already paid $1.2 billion to settle other cases related to Zyprexa and is being sued or investigated by 42 states.

Of course, the company also provides medicines — including Prozac — that have helped millions of people. And members of the Lilly family started an endowment that, in 2007, handed out $336.6 million, including $90 million to religious organizations. So where does that leave potential grant recipients: Is the endowment money tainted, redeemable, or just plain money?

Will Jones, Goshen College vice president for institutional advancement, said he is “comfortable with money coming from the Lilly Endowment.” Jones sees “a big distinction” between Eli Lilly and Co. and the endowment. The latter is a non-profit organization with a separate location and board. However, endowment spokeswoman Gretchen Wolfram said more than 95 percent of the endowment’s stock is in Eli Lilly. So, does the money’s source matter?

“Of course it does,” Jones said. If Eli Lilly and Co. signed the donation checks, “we would have to think long and hard about that gift.”